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The new smart ice maker from Govee is affordable and versatile

The Govee Ice maker on a black background.
Govee

Govee makes all sorts of smart-home products, but one of its most obscure gadgets is the Countertop Ice Maker. Capable of making up to 26 pounds of ice per day and compatible with Alexa, it’s a strange (but useful) appliance to have in the kitchen. The company is now giving it an upgrade with the arrival of the GoveeLife Countertop Smart Ice Maker 1s, which takes ice-making to a whole new level.

Along with the ability to produce 26 pounds of ice per day, you can choose from three different ice cube sizes, schedule ice-making and cleaning routines, or take manual control via the Govee mobile app. Along with Alexa and Google Assistant, the Smart Ice Maker 1s also supports Matter — so you should have no trouble creating powerful automations for your kitchen.

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Part of what makes the GoveeLife Smart Countertop Ice Maker 1s even more appealing is its one-tap self-cleaning feature. This starts a cleaning process that takes just 10 minutes to complete without the need for much manual intervention. If you prefer, this can be scheduled via the mobile app to ensure your ice maker is clean and ready to roll ahead of big events.

If you live in a small home or compact studio, you’ll be glad to hear about Do Not Disturb Mode, which prevents the appliance from making noise during scheduled times of the day. So if you don’t want it kicking on while you sleep or during movie night, you can program a time for it to keep quiet.

Toss in RGB lights and integrated sensors to monitor ice and water levels, and you’ve got a well-rounded ice maker for all occasions.

Despite all the premium features packed into the GoveeLife Smart Countertop Ice Maker 1s, the silver model is listed for just $170. The black model is a bit more expensive at $180. Both are now available for purchase at Govee.com.

Jon Bitner
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Jon Bitner is a writer covering consumer electronics, technology, and gaming. His work has been published on various websites…
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